The St. Lawrence University women's basketball team opens the season at SUNY Potsdam on Saturday with an experienced group. After three straight years featuring mostly underclassmen lineups, the Saints return a veteran-laden roster for 2025-26.

Head coach Dan Roiger, entering his 17th season, said the team's maturity and work ethic have stood out in the preseason.

"I'm excited to get things started and see if we can compete consistently this year in all phases of the game," Roiger said. "The past three seasons we've been dominated by underclassmen, and now for the first time since 2021-22 we have more upperclassmen than underclassmen. Now that we have a veteran team, we need to execute with the precision and consistency that goes along with that experience."

The Saints are coming off a 16-10 season in 2024-25 that included their third straight Liberty League Tournament appearance and a fifth-place finish in the standings. Defense once again defined their success. St. Lawrence led the Liberty League in scoring defense (57.1 points per game) and opponent three-point percentage (23.3%), the latter ranking 14th nationally.

Leading the charge is junior forward Elizabeth Flynn, who averaged a double-double with 11.7 points and 10.2 rebounds per game last season, earning All-Liberty League Second Team and CSC Academic All-District honors. Junior guard Jackie Malley returns after hitting a team-best 58 three-pointers and averaging 10.5 points per game.

The Saints also return a deep remainder of the roster that includes Alexis Mackenzie, Josie Cancro, KJ Greenhalgh, Hannah Van Dyke, Emily Wendt, Margaret Dougher, Izzy Caron, Annie Perry, Caelan McCormack, Norah Niesz, and Mason Baker-Schlendering. The group now blends experience with the defensive discipline.

Roiger said he's seen strong progress since last winter, especially in areas that limited the team's ceiling a year ago.

"Our players worked hard over the summer to address some weaknesses, and the team has worked hard in practice the last few weeks to understand who we are and the style we need to play in order to be successful," he said. "Now we get to play under the lights and see if we can do that on a consistent basis."

"I like our team and believe they have good potential to compete. It all starts this weekend."